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Description: CARVED FROM LIFE IN LAUGHTER Welcome to Pagliacci’s! Pagliacci’s is one of those timeless places, born in passion, carved from life and bathed in laughter. From the foccacia bread and soup through the Broadway-style cheesecake, every morsel is made on the spot, served with style by someone hustling for you. And there’s more than enough pasta or steak to bring home to Asta. Step back into history. This is what it used to be like before franchises. Nourishing souls since 1979 Tell ’em Joe sent you!

Stopped in after a Google search. Interesting place. Eclectic. TWe had drinks and salads. The bread and salads were absolutely delicious. Impressive flavours!Sadly the host/server? Was very confused and would leave us every few minutes to ask the bartender or cook....odd.My husband got a drink order, and he didn't even ask me. Then another girl came up and just stared talking to us....Then I was confused and told her so. She then tells me she is the server. I ask her if i too can get a drink and if we could have salads as the other man didn't know if we could.Weird.We just ate and left.Not sure if come back.

Ask FJEL about Pagliacci's

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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC

solomonsiegel, General Manager at Pagliacci's, responded to this reviewResponded 11 July 2018

Hi FJEL,

I am so sorry for you subpar service. We take great service very seriously. Please email me at solomon@pagliaccis.ca so I can find out who servered you (retrain them) and make things up to you.

Thank youSolomon Siegel GM

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Report response as inappropriateThank you. We appreciate your input.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC

All reviewspastabreadhemingway short storycheesecakesoupprawnssalmonsteakprawn brokerbicycle thiefworth the waittables are close togetheritalian foodvictoria institutioncream saucewait in linefun atmosphere

Review tags are currently only available for English language reviews.

Despite the name, which I thought meant clowns, there wasn’t any clowning around at this place.

The wait into the restaurant was about 20-25 minutes and there was one large family and a couple in front of us. I had someone in my party who had mobility issues and a beautiful couple helped him inside to sit down and even offered to help him in.

Sophia seated us. She was magnificent, as was the rest of the staff at this restaurant. The place was tight with tables and chairs and we feared that we would have a difficult time getting to our table, but Sophia helped the person from my party through the sea of tables and chairs to our table. The nice couple standing before us had been seated near us and offered to hold the walker that we had with us. Unfortunately, it was taking room for the waitstaff and people to maneuver around so Sophia offered to store it in the back for us.

The restaurant was dim for my taste but I may be getting old. The walls were decorated with well-known celebrities and a Hollywood backdrop on one side of the wall. As you can tell from other photos or if you visit, this restaurant had a movie theme far from the typical Hard Rock or Mel’s Diner. It made for good entertainment and a good laugh at all the entree descriptions.

Personally, the food does not disappoint. If I had the time I would’ve probably requested everything from the meat pasta menu, but I should give others a chance for my seat. The seafood lasagna was a good portion for a healthy appetite. The ambience and the well prepared, flavorful meals are worth the wait from all the background noise and cramped seating. And...if you stick around by 8p, they will have live music. We were able to get just a taste of the jazz music before we had to leave.

Ask 091314 about Pagliacci's

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This was recommended to us and was told it was very busy and we would have to wait. When we arrived there was a line up outside, y daughter went in and called me in. There were tables for 2. There is no way they could put tables together It is very loud with the bestItalian food I have tasted in a very long time. If you loveItalian food this is where to go.

Ask Jane S about Pagliacci's

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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC

Big family pasta dishes that can be shared, the bread is very tasty, salads also very good and sharable, friendly staff (EH Canada! We love you!) so overall can't go wrong with this place. Try the cheap Italian wine on the menu, it was very good.

I would not miss this place if in Victoria and seems the locals are also waiting in line, which tells me something.

Value

Service

Food

Ask Robert R about Pagliacci's

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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC

We arrived at 3:30pm. Not surprising, we were in between lunch and dinner so not everything on the menu was available. However, there were still many choices. The bread kept on coming and was excellent. The menu is a fun read and makes you smile. I had the Meat John Doe ($12.50 size) and it was delicious. There isn’t much space between the tables. So keeping the legs and arms close together makes for a cozy time!

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Ask Gary W about Pagliacci's

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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC